Apparatus for displaying road number for a locomotive

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for displaying a road number for a locomotive includes a bracket, a polyhedral housing, an LED-based illumination source, and a display plate. The bracket is configured to be rigidly affixed to a nose portion of the locomotive. The polyhedral housing includes a first side and a second side. The first side is disposed within the bracket. The second side is disposed in a spaced-apart relation to the first side. The second side is configured to releasably engage with the bracket and receive a transparent cover thereon. The LED-based illumination source is disposed between the first side and the transparent cover. The display plate is disposed between the LED-based illumination source and the transparent cover. The display plate includes one or more alpha-numerals scripted thereon, wherein the alpha-numerals are representative of the road number.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to apparatus for displaying characters or alpha-numerals on a vehicle. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to an apparatus for displaying a road number for a locomotive.

BACKGROUND

Locomotives running back and forth on railroads are identified by way of a number typically called a road number or a railroad number. In order to associate and/or identify the railroad or the locomotive running thereon, the road number or the railroad number may be displayed on the locomotive.

Conventional structures designed to display road numbers on locomotives may be difficult to fabricate and/or assemble. Moreover, a body of the locomotive may require suitable modifications to accommodate a fitment of the display structure. Further, in some cases, the conventional structures employed one or more bulbs to illuminate the display structures. However, the bulbs may fuse at any point of time in operation and may be render the entire display system non-operational by way of its function.

Hence, there is a need for an apparatus that can be easily retrofitted onto existing locomotives besides overcoming the aforementioned drawbacks.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In one aspect of the present disclosure, an apparatus for displaying a road number for a locomotive includes a bracket, a polyhedral housing, an LED-based illumination source, and a display plate. The bracket is configured to be rigidly affixed to a nose portion of the locomotive. The polyhedral housing includes a first side and a second side. The first side is disposed within the bracket. The second side is disposed in a spaced-apart relation to the first side. The second side is configured to releasably engage with the bracket and receive a transparent cover thereon. The LED-based illumination source is disposed between the first side and the transparent cover. The display plate is disposed between the LED-based illumination source and the transparent cover. The display plate includes one or more alpha-numerals scripted thereon, wherein the alpha-numerals are representative of the road number.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of displaying a road number for a locomotive is provided. The method includes rigidly affixing a bracket to at least one of a nose portion and a tail portion of the locomotive; and providing a polyhedral housing having a first side and a second side, the first side being positioned within the housing and the second side disposed in releasable engagement with the bracket. The method further includes providing a transparent cover to the second side of the polyhedral housing; positioning an LED-based illumination source within the housing; and providing a display plate between the LED-based illumination source and the transparent cover, wherein the display plate comprises one or more alpha-numerals scripted thereon.

Other features and aspects of this disclosure will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of an exemplary locomotive employing an apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of the apparatus showing the parts thereof;

FIG. 3 is a front view of the locomotive;

FIG. 4 is a rear view of the locomotive; and

FIG. 5 is a method of displaying a road number for a locomotive.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to same or like parts. Moreover, references to various elements described herein are made collectively or individually when there may be more than one element of the same type. However, such references are merely exemplary in nature. It may be noted that any reference to elements in the singular is also to be construed to relate to the plural and vice-versa without limiting the scope of the disclosure to the exact number or type of such elements unless set forth explicitly in the appended claims.

FIG. 1 shows a side perspective view of an exemplary locomotive 100 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. The locomotive 100 may be provided with wheels (not shown) that are configured to run on a railroad (not shown). The locomotive 100 may be a diesel powered locomotive, an electric locomotive, or may be embodied in any form or type of locomotive as known to one of skill in the art.

As shown in FIG. 1, the locomotive 100 may include a nose portion 102, a cabin portion 104, and a tail portion 106. The nose portion 102 is disposed at a fore of the locomotive 100 and located distally away from the tail portion 106. The tail portion 106 is disposed at an aft of the locomotive 100. The cabin portion 104 extends between the nose portion 102 and the tail portion 106. The cabin portion 104 is configured to accommodate an engine driver or an operator of the locomotive 100.

The present disclosure relates to an apparatus 108 for displaying a road number for a locomotive 100. As shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus 108 is provided on the nose portion 102 of the locomotive 100. The apparatus 108 is configured to associatively allow visual identification of the locomotive 100 and/or the railroad on which the locomotive 100 is currently operating.

Referring to FIG. 2, a partially exploded view of the apparatus 108 is shown. As shown, the apparatus 108 includes a bracket 110 configured to be rigidly affixed to the nose portion 102 of the locomotive 100. However, as will be evident from the remainder of this disclosure, the bracket 110 may be suitably positioned at other locations on the locomotive 100. The bracket 110 may be obtained by forming a sheet metal into the illustrated shape so as to allow the bracket 110 to be welded onto the nose portion 102 of the locomotive 100.

Referring to the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 2, the bracket 110 includes a first portion 112 that is configured to be rigidly affixed with the nose portion 102 of the locomotive 100. As disclosed earlier herein, the bracket 110 may be beneficially affixed to the locomotive 100, by welding the first portion 112 of the bracket 110 to the nose portion 102 of the locomotive 100. The welding may be, for e.g., but not limited to, Thermal Inert GAS (TIG) welding, Metal Inert Gas (MIG) welding, or may include other types of welding as commonly known to one skilled in the art.

The bracket 110 further includes a pair of second portions 114 that are configured to laterally extend from the first portion 112. As such, the lateral extension of the second portions 114 away from the first portion 112 of the bracket 110 provides a depth D to the bracket 110, as will be explained later in this document.

The bracket 110 further includes a pair of third portions 116 laterally extending from the pair of respective second portions 114. Therefore, the third portions 116 may be oriented in a parallel relation to the first portion 112 and disposed away from a mid-line M of the bracket 110.

The apparatus 108 further includes a polyhedral housing 118. In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 2, the polyhedral housing 118 is box-shaped i.e., the housing 118 has a hollow and substantially cuboidal configuration. The housing 118 includes a first side 120 and a second side 122 that are disposed in a spaced-apart relation to each other. The first side 120 is disposed within the bracket 110, i.e., within a depth D of the bracket 110, while the second side 122 is configured to releasably engage with the pair of third portions 116 of the bracket 110. In order to position first side 120 of the housing 118 within the bracket 110, the housing 118 may be slid laterally i.e., along the mid-line M of the bracket 110, so as to be received within the bracket 110. Alternatively, the housing 118 may be received axially within the bracket 110, wherein the first side 120 of the housing 118 is brought closer to the first portion 112 of the housing 118 in the axial direction A. As such, the bracket 110 may be sized and/or shaped so as to at least partly receive the housing 118 therein while simultaneously allowing the second side 122 of the housing 118 to be disposed in abutment with the pair of third portions 116 of the bracket 110.

The second side 122 of the housing 118 is configured to receive a transparent cover 124 thereon. The transparent cover 124 may be, for example, glass, clear plastic, fiberglass or any other material known to allow a substantially high level of light transmission therethrough.

The apparatus 108 further includes an LED-based illumination source 126 and a display plate 128. The LED-based illumination source 126 is disposed between the first side 120 of the housing 118 and the transparent cover 124. As shown in FIG. 2, the LED-based illumination source 126 is beneficially supported on the first side 120 of the housing 118 by fasteners 130. The display plate 128 is disposed between the LED-based illumination source 126 and the transparent cover 124. The display plate 128 includes an alpha-numeral script 132 thereon. The alpha-numeral script 132, as disclosed herein, is representative of the road number associated with the locomotive 100 and/or the railroad on which the locomotive 100 is currently operational.

With continued reference to FIG. 2, the third portions 116 of the bracket 110 define threaded receptacles 134 therethrough. Correspondingly, the transparent cover 124 and the second side 122 of the housing 118 define openings 136, 138 that are disposed in axial alignment with the threaded receptacles 134 of the bracket 110. The threaded receptacles 134 together with the axially aligned openings 136, 138 of the transparent cover 124 and the second side 122 of the housing 118 are configured to receive fasteners 140 therein for accomplishing a releasable coupling of the housing 118, and the transparent cover 124 with the bracket 110.

In various embodiments, of the present disclosure, the display plate 128 may be formed from a material that is transparent, translucent, or opaque. However, the alpha-numeral script 132 disposed on the display plate 128 is formed in visual contrast to a remainder of the display plate 128. Therefore, if the display plate 128 is transparent or translucent, then the alpha-numeral script 132 may be configured to be opaque. Similarly, if the display plate 128 is opaque or translucent, then the alpha-numeral script 132 may be configured to be transparent. One of ordinary skill in the art will acknowledge that various colors and/or light transmission features may be beneficially implemented in the materials of the display plate 128 and the alpha-numeral script 132 so as to obtain an enhanced legibility of the road number to a human eye.

Moreover, the first side 120 of the housing 118 may additionally define an aperture 142 that is disposed about the LED-based illumination source 126. The aperture 142 is configured to allow passage of an electrical lead (not shown) associated with the LED-based illumination source 126. The electrical lead may be connected to a power source (not shown) such as, but not limited to, a battery, an alternator, or other types of electrical power generation and/or storage devices known to one skilled in the art.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, the apparatus 108 is shown disposed partway along a height H1 of the nose portion 102. As such, the bracket 110 of the apparatus 108 is positioned partway along the height H1 of the nose portion 102. Although the present disclosure discloses the apparatus 108 being positioned partway along the height H1 of the nose portion 102, it may be beneficially contemplated to select other locations on the locomotive 100 for the fitment of the bracket 110 and of the apparatus 108. Referring to FIG. 4, the tail portion 106 of the locomotive 100 is illustrated. As shown, the bracket 110 is positioned partway along a height H2 of the tail portion 106. One of ordinary skill in the art will acknowledge that various locations on the locomotive 100 may be selected for positioning of the apparatus 108 thereon and for reasons such as, but not limited to, ease of visibility of the apparatus 108 and identification of the locomotive 100 and/or the railroad, ease in servicing of the apparatus 108, and the like.

Various embodiments disclosed herein are to be taken in the illustrative and explanatory sense, and should in no way be construed as limiting of the present disclosure. All directional references (e.g., above, below, upper, lower, top, bottom, vertical, horizontal, inward, outward, radial, upward, downward, left, right, leftward, rightward, L.H.S, R.H.S, clockwise, and counter-clockwise) are only used for identification purposes to aid the reader's understanding of the present disclosure, and may not create limitations, particularly as to the position, orientation, or use of the devices and/or methods disclosed herein. Joinder references (e.g., attached, affixed, coupled, engaged, connected, and the like) are to be construed broadly. Moreover, such joinder references do not necessarily infer that two elements are directly connected to each other.

Additionally, all numerical terms, such as, but not limited to, “first”, “second”, “third”, or any other ordinary and/or numerical terms, should also be taken only as identifiers, to assist the reader's understanding of the various embodiments, variations and/or modifications of the present disclosure, and may not create any limitations, particularly as to the order, or preference, of any embodiment, variation and/or modification relative to, or over, another embodiment, variation and/or modification.

It is to be understood that individual features shown or described for one embodiment may be combined with individual features shown or described for another embodiment. The above described implementation does not in any way limit the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, it is to be understood although some features are shown or described to illustrate the use of the present disclosure in the context of functional segments, such features may be omitted from the scope of the present disclosure without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure as defined in the appended claims.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

FIG. 5 illustrates a method 500 of displaying a road number for a locomotive 100. Referring to FIG. 5, at step 502, the method 500 includes rigidly affixing the bracket 110 to at least one of the nose portion 102 and the tail portion 106 of the locomotive 100. At step 504, the method 500 further includes providing the polyhedral housing 118 having the first side 120 and the second side 122, the first side 120 being positioned within the housing 118 and the second side 122 disposed in releasable engagement with the bracket 110.

At step 506, the method 500 further includes providing the transparent cover 124 to the second side 122 of the polyhedral housing 118. At step 508, the method 500 further includes positioning the LED-based illumination source 126 within the housing 118.

At step 510, the method 500 further includes providing the display plate 128 between the LED-based illumination source 126 and the transparent cover 124, wherein the display plate 128 comprises the alpha-numeral script 132 thereon. Thereafter, the method 500 may include switching ON the LED-based illumination source 126 so as to enhance the contrast between the alpha-numeral script 132 and the remainder of the display plate 128.

The present disclosure has applicability in displaying road numbers for locomotives and other like vehicles that are configured to run on railroads, for e.g., trains, trams, shunt trains, tug trains etc. Embodiments disclosed herein may be advantageously implemented to allow easy servicing of the apparatus 108, reduced maintenance with provision of the LED-based illumination source 126 and also better visibility of the road number in various operating conditions.

The apparatus 108 of the present disclosure offers a simple yet effective solution directed at mitigated drawbacks experienced by previously known display systems such as, but not limited to, poor visibility, high maintenance, high manufacturing and/or operational costs. Moreover, the apparatus 108 of the present disclosure may be readily implemented for fitment onto a locomotive with little or no modifications required to the locomotive. Therefore, the apparatus 108 may be easily and conveniently retrofitted onto existing locomotives as well.

While aspects of the present disclosure have been particularly shown and described with reference to the embodiments above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated by the modification of the disclosed machines, systems and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of what is disclosed. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of the present disclosure as determined based upon the claims and any equivalents thereof. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for displaying a road number for a locomotive, the apparatus comprising: a bracket configured to be rigidly affixed to a nose portion of the locomotive; a polyhedral housing including: a first side disposed within the bracket; and a second side disposed in a spaced-apart relation to the first side, the second side configured to releasably engage with the bracket and receive a transparent cover thereon; and an LED-based illumination source disposed between the first side and the transparent cover provided on the second side of the housing; and a display plate disposed between the LED-based illumination source and the transparent cover, the display plate comprising one or more alpha-numerals scripted thereon, wherein the alpha-numerals are representative of the road number.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display plate is at least one of transparent, translucent, and opaque.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the alpha-numeral script is formed in visual contrast to a remainder of the display plate.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the bracket includes: a first portion configured to be rigidly affixed with the nose portion of the locomotive; a pair of second portions laterally extending from the first portion; and a pair of third portions laterally extending from the pair of second portions respectively.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the pair of third portions are disposed parallel to the first portion.
 6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the pair of third portions define threaded receptacles therethrough, the threaded receptacles configured to receive fasteners therein for releasably coupling the housing to the bracket.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first side defines an aperture configured to allow passage of an electrical lead therethrough, the electrical lead associated with the LED-based illumination source.
 8. A locomotive including: a cab having a nose portion, a cabin portion, and a tail portion; and employing the apparatus of claim 1 for fitment onto at least one of the nose portion and the tail portion.
 9. The locomotive of claim 8, wherein the bracket is positioned partway along a height of the nose portion.
 10. The locomotive of claim 8, wherein the bracket is positioned partway along a height of the tail portion.
 11. The locomotive of claim 1, wherein the polyhedral housing is box-shaped.
 12. A method of displaying a road number for a locomotive, the method comprising: rigidly affixing a bracket to at least one of a nose portion and a tail portion of the locomotive; providing a polyhedral housing having a first side and a second side in spaced apart relation to each other, the first side being positioned within the housing and the second side disposed in releasable engagement with the bracket; providing a transparent cover to the second side of the polyhedral housing; positioning an LED-based illumination source within the housing; and providing a display plate between the LED-based illumination source and the transparent cover, wherein the display plate comprises one or more alpha-numerals scripted thereon.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the polyhedral housing is box-shaped.
 14. The method of claim 11 further comprising switching ON the LED-based illumination source.
 15. The method of claim 11 further defining threaded receptacles in the housing to receive fasteners therein, the fasteners configured to releasably couple the housing to the bracket.
 16. The method of claim 11 further defining an aperture in the first side of the housing to allow passage of an electrical lead therethrough, the electrical lead associated with the LED-based illumination source. 